Fireplaces have become increasingly commonplace in homes, businesses, and other buildings. A fireplace may provide many benefits, including the creation of heat as well as an aesthetically-pleasing arrangement of flames, sounds, and smells. A fireplace is typically mounted in a wall of a structure and includes one or more air passages running into and out of the fireplace. The plurality of passages creates an air plenum system. A portion of the air plenum system typically includes one or more air intakes coupled to passages used to take room air, or air from the room in which the fireplace is disposed, and direct the room air through passages running adjacent to the combustion chamber. The room air is heated as it passes adjacent to the combustion chamber and is eventually exhausted through an air exhaust back into the room. One or more blowers may also be placed within the air plenum system to increase the circulation of room air through the fireplace. In this manner, the amount of heat delivered to a room may be significantly increased.
While the room air that is passed through the air plenum system is heated by the fireplace, no other conditioning of the air is typically done. However, the construction of modern homes and buildings cause rooms within them to act as sealed environments, and the air trapped in these rooms can become stale. Even worse than that, airborne contaminants such as allergens, viruses, dust, microorganisms, and other undesirable pollutants can become trapped in the air and circulated throughout the structure. The circulation of air through a fireplace can contribute to the distribution of these contaminants.
Therefore, it would be desirable to create a fireplace that can provide the typical benefits of a fireplace, such as the creation and distribution of heat, while reducing or eliminating undesired airborne contaminants.